


Bruce & Goose's Truce

by heyjupiter



Category: Captain Marvel (2019), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Captain Marvel Spoilers, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Bruce Banner/Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Post-Captain Marvel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-16 00:50:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,305
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18084146
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/heyjupiter/pseuds/heyjupiter
Summary: A follow-up to the first post-credits scene from Captain Marvel.When Carol Danvers learns that Nick Fury is among the missing, her first thought is to look for Goose. Intrigued, Bruce accompanies Carol and Steve on their Flerken rescue mission. When Carol picks up a new distress call and heads off on another rescue mission, Bruce is left to tend to Goose while hoping Carol can bring Tony back alive.





	1. Bruce & Goose's Truce

**Author's Note:**

> **Content Note:**  
>  I didn't tag this as major character death but it does mention characters lost in the Snap, including some whose fate was not definitively shown in Infinity War. They're not the focus of these story, but I thought I'd mention it here.
> 
>  **Thanks:**  
>  Thanks so much to Sally0 for the speedy and helpful beta read! ♥

For at least the thousandth time since he’d gotten back to Earth, Bruce wished Tony were there. He and Rhodey had tried their best to understand the alien technology Nat had brought to them from the remains of Fury’s car, but it just didn’t make sense. It looked like a 90s-style pager—in fact Rhodey had been able to identify the exact model it seemed to have been based on—but its power source was definitely extraterrestrial, and its signal untraceable. But he was sure that Tony would have been able to figure it out, if only he were there. 

It even seemed possible that the tech could be reverse-engineered to contact Tony...but of course, they’d need Tony’s specific genius to figure out how to contact him. Or Shuri could probably have done it, if she hadn’t been counted among the ever-growing number of reported missing. 

Still, they’d worked with the device enough that, when it stopped transmitting, Bruce felt reasonably sure that even without Tony, they could get it restarted, whatever good it would do. But when a woman with glowing fists and an outfit matching the logo on the space pager turned up in their facility looking for Nick Fury, Bruce wished more than ever that Tony were there. He sensed that Tony would somehow know how to handle this situation.

After an uncomfortable silence, Nat, never one to mince words, answered, “Fury’s...gone. Who are you?”

“What do you mean, he’s gone? He paged me. Where is he? Who are you?”

“My name is Natasha Romanoff. I’m an agent of SHIELD.”

“SHIELD,” the woman repeated. 

Nat, ever-prepared, produced a badge and started, “The Strategic—“

“I know what SHIELD is. I don’t know you. What about Coulson? Where’s he?”

Natasha shook her head. “Look, a—a lot of people are gone. We think contacting you was Fury’s...final act. But we don’t know who you are?”

“Gone,” the woman repeated, shaking her blonde head. Her fists stopped glowing, which Bruce took to be a good sign. Those had made him nervous, though Hulk—per their new normal—hadn’t so much as mentally batted a big green eyelash at the sight. “I’m sorry. I’m Carol Danvers. I guess I stayed away too long.”

“Away...where?” Bruce asked, his curiosity overcoming his shyness as he crept closer to the newcomer. 

“Who are you?” Carol asked, turning her intense gaze on Bruce.

“I’m, ah, Dr. Bruce Banner.” Bruce waved and hoped that using his title might help him make the argument that he was a person worth talking to. “We were trying to trace the signal that, um, the pager was transmitting. But we couldn’t. It didn’t seem to be...terrestrial.”

Carol looked around the room, took in Steve and Rhodey. “And the rest of you? Are you all SHIELD?”

Steve walked forward and offered her his hand. “Not exactly. We’re the Avengers, or what’s left of them. I’m Steve Rogers.”

Carol took his hand and asked, “Avengers?” Her tone was almost...amused.

“Some people call us Earth’s Mightiest Heroes,” Rhodey said drily. “Not that that means too much these days.” He, too, offered his hand and added, “Col. James Rhodes.” 

“Colonel. Are you all military?” Carol asked. 

“Not exactly,” Rhodey said. “But I’m USAF.”

“Me, too! Or I was, I suppose. So what exactly are the Avengers?”

“Fury started the Avengers Initiative in the 90s,” Nat said. “We’re an elite defensive force with enhanced abilities.”

“Avengers,” Carol mumbled. “Fury thinks he’s so funny.”

“I’m sorry?” Nat asked. 

“Ah...it’s not important. What about Maria Rambeau?”

Bruce glanced around the room and saw blank looks on his colleagues’ faces. All of them, that is, except Rhodey’s.

“You know Photon?” he asked, his smile wide. 

“She’s my best friend. Is she an Avenger?”

“Ah, no, but she’s a damn fine flight instructor. Last I heard she was down at Barksdale.”

“Okay, so then you’re all...what exactly?”

“Avengers,” Steve repeated. “I’m, ah, Captain America.” He sounded a little sheepish; Steve was used to being known.

“Like from World War II?”

“Ah, yeah, like that.”

“But you...what year is it?” She looked at the screens in front of her, then back to Steve. “It’s 2019? You’re not...are you?”

“Ma’am, I don’t mean to be rude, but it’s an extremely long story.”

“Do you know anything about Thanos?” Bruce asked.

“Thanos? The Mad Titan?”

“So…you have heard of him, then,” Rhodey said. 

“Bits and pieces. He’s obsessed with getting the Infinity Stones, but of course that’s impossible.”

“Well, uh, actually,” Bruce said. 

“What?” Carol asked.

Bruce did his best to get her up to speed, with occasional input from the others.

“So you didn’t notice any population loss on other worlds?” Bruce asked, after Carol had had a moment to process what she’d seen and heard.

She shook her head slowly. “No...but I wouldn’t have, I came here as soon as I got Fury’s call, I didn’t make any stops along the way.”

“How is that possible?” Bruce blurted out.

She shrugged. “I’m an efficient traveler.” She peered at a panel on her wrist and tapped at it with a thoughtful hum. “But if he really did finish the Infinity Gauntlet, I don’t see any reason why his random death sentence wouldn’t have worked universally. My god, this is...incalculable.”

“Actually I think Bruce calculated it,” Steve said helpfully. He pointed at one of the data screens, which Carol studied with a frown.

“I mean, I tried my best...based on the data I got from Thor.”

“Thor? Like from Norse mythology?”

“Uh, yeah, pretty much,” Bruce said. “It turns out Asgard is a planet.”

“Huh. So earth has made other extraterrestrial contact since my last trip home, huh?”

“More than we’d prefer, honestly. Uh, no offense,” Bruce said hastily. 

“None taken,” Carol said. “Oh, did you think I’m an alien? I’m from Massachusetts.”

“Oh,” Bruce said. 

He assumed he looked as confused as he felt, because Carol offered him a genuine smile and said, “Yeah, it took me awhile to understand it, too. Hey, speaking of extraterrestrials, where’s Goose?”

“Goose?” Bruce asked, his tone unintentionally sharp. He never thought he’d miss Tony’s dumb rhyming nicknames, but it had been such a long time since he’d heard Tony fondly coo “Brucie-Goosey” at him. Hearing the word now caused an unexpected stab of pain.

“You know, Fury’s...cat?”

“Fury had a cat?” Steve asked incredulously. 

“If he had a cat when you knew him, there’s no way it would still be alive now,” Nat said. “Sorry.”

Carol shook her head. “But Goose isn’t a cat, not really. She just looks like one.”

“Is this a riddle?” Rhodey asked. 

“No. Goose is a Flerken. They have very long life spans.”

Bruce blinked. “Are you saying Fury had an...alien cat?”

“Named Goose?” Rhodey added.

“I suppose I am saying that, yes.”

“Whoa,” Bruce managed. 

“She would be a useful ally, if we can find her.”

“Seriously?” Bruce asked.

“Also...I missed her.”

Slowly, Steve said, “I know where we could look...but I don’t think anyone would have been feeding her.”

Carol twisted her face into a smirk. “That wouldn’t be a problem for Goose.”

“Well...I can take you to look,” Steve said. “It’s the first lead on anything we’ve had in awhile.”

“I’d like to come too. I might be useful,” Bruce said. His curiosity had definitely been piqued. Even if it turned out to be a regular house cat, Bruce had always loved animals.

Nat raised her eyebrows. “I seem to recall you complaining that none of your PhDs were in xenobiology.”

“Well, no, but biology...and besides, I did two years of field work on Sakaar.”

“Sakaar? What the hell were you doing on Sakaar?” Carol asked. 

“Oh...it’s another long story,” Bruce replied. Nat fixed her eyes on the screen in front of her. 

“Well, maybe you can catch me up on the way,” Carol said. “Let’s go.”

Bruce grinned. “I just hope this isn’t a wild goose chase.”

Steve gave a faint smile. Rhodey groaned. “No way. After a joke that bad, you have to go, Bruce. Get out of here. We’ll hold down the fort here.”

“Harsh but fair,” Bruce replied. He gave Rhodey a quick hug before making quick preparations to leave with Steve and Carol. He rarely left the compound, preferring to bury himself with work. Besides, there wasn’t usually much to see these days. His days had blurred into an endless stream of bleak sameness.

Carol was intrigued by the Quinjet, and Bruce explained the tech to her as best he could while Steve flew. He kept his voice impressively steady as he mentioned Tony’s name. 

“Tony Stark?” Carol asked with a grimace. 

“Did...did you know him?” Tony _did_ have a wide social network. 

“I knew of him. Kind of a sexist asshole, right?”

Bruce winced. “He, ah, did used to have kind of a reputation, yeah.”

“Used to? I’m sorry, did he die?”

“I, uh, I’m not sure, actually,” Bruce said softly. 

Steve discreetly gave Bruce a questioning glance. Bruce shook his head in reply. He was fine, he was fine. Everyone had lost everything, Bruce wasn’t unique in his grief. He was better off than most; he still had hope that Tony was alive.

Bruce cleared his throat and continued, “He, ah, he left Earth on a borrowed spaceship to try to keep Thanos away from Earth. Thanos came back, obviously, but we haven’t heard from Tony. Or...or others. You wouldn’t have a way of communicating with them, would you?” He thought he’d seen her send a message with whatever tech was on her wrist.

“Maybe,” Carol said, after a measured pause. “Who’d he borrow the ship from?”

“Well...Thanos.”

Carol laughed. “Okay, sounds like he’s got a real pair of steel ovaries on him, at least. But the stories I heard about him...well, I just find it hard to believe that the Avengers are worth very much if Tony Stark is an Avenger but Maria Rambeau isn’t.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know Maria Rambeau,” Steve said.

“But Fury did, so I just don’t know why…” Before they’d left, Bruce had already helped Carol confirm that Maria and her daughter were both still among the living. “Well, never mind, I guess it isn’t your fault.”

“You know, I didn’t know him before, but Tony had a...near-death experience, and I think it really changed him,” Bruce said. “I don’t think he’s the person you remember.”

“I suppose I can understand that. Well, I can try to send out a message on the comm band Titans usually use, though there’s no guarantee it’s what Thanos was using.”

“Thank you, I’d...I’d really appreciate it.”

Carol tapped at the inside of her wrist and said, “At this distance, a short message is best. What do you want me to say?”

“Earth needs Iron Man,” Steve said. Bruce was relieved to hear Steve speak up for Tony. In bits and pieces, he’d gathered the story of the Sokovia Accords and everything he’d missed on Sakaar. He hated to think of the team divided that way—though he supposed it was preferable to the way they were currently divided.

“Does it?” Carol asked.

“We could really use his help,” Steve affirmed.

“Hmm,” Carol said. “Well, I suppose if Fury vouched for him for this Avengers Initiative, he must not be _too_ terrible.”

Bruce grinned. “ _That’s_ the message you should transmit to him.”

Steve nodded. “Keep him humble.”

Carol smiled. “I’ve always thought humility was an overrated virtue.”

“Then you’d get along with Tony like peas and carrots,” Steve said. His tone was joking, but Bruce thought he was probably right. Tony loved it when people held themselves in correctly-high esteem, and Bruce was sure that Carol qualified on that front. 

“I hope I get the chance to meet him.”

“Me, too,” Bruce said. 

“But are you sure that’s the message to transmit? It could make Earth look weak.”

“Ah…” Bruce considered the things he wanted to tell Tony. _I miss you. I love you. I need you. Come home. This isn’t fair. I’m sorry I left but I didn’t mean to. I won’t leave again if you’ll just come home._

Bruce sighed. “Tell him the Strongest Avenger says to phone home.” That would at least let Tony know that Bruce was still alive, and hopefully make Earth sound protected. Even if it wasn’t, really, at the moment.

“Aww, _E.T._ , I loved that movie,” Carol said. She gave Bruce a once-over and added, “But please don’t tell me _you’re_ the strongest Avenger?”

“Oh...it’s an...inside joke,” Bruce said weakly. “He’ll know what it means.”

Carol nodded and tapped something out on her wrist. “Well, that sounds good to me. I’ll let you know if I hear anything. But...it is kind of a long shot, just to warn you.”

“Long shots are pretty much the only kind we have left,” Steve said. 

Carol said, “Yeah, I’ve been there.”

They fell into an anxious silence. Carol explained that it would take a long time for her signal to reach Tony, and then for a reply to come, but Bruce couldn’t help but feel a spark of hope.

“We’re coming in for a landing,” Steve announced. Carol looked out the window with interest, and before long, Steve led them underground to what Bruce recognized as a SHIELD safehouse. 

Carol frowned. “Is this where Fury lived?”

“Not exactly, but it’s a place he could go. I thought if he were hiding something, it would probably be here,” Steve explained. 

“Hmm. Here, Goose,” Carol called. After a moment of expectant silence, she said, “I think Goose would just be wherever Fury actually lived. Like...his actual house.”

“You don’t think he’d want to hide an alien?”

“I’m telling you, Goose would look exactly like a normal cat. There’d be no reason to hide her.”

Because Steve was very brave, he asked, “And, ah, you’re sure Goose is an alien and not...a cat?”

Carol’s eyes darkened and her fists glowed. “I’m sure.”

Steve held his hands up in surrender. “Sorry. Just checking.”

Carol shook her head and her fists returned to their usual color. “I’m sorry I lost control. I know this is a...stressful situation.”

Steve glanced between Carol and Bruce and said, “Sure, we’ve all been there.”

Bruce took a measured breath. He still hadn’t gotten around to explaining Hulk to Carol. But then, Hulk hadn’t gotten around to showing up at all since they’d returned to Earth.

Steve said, “Fury’s home isn’t far from here. We can go there now.”

Carol said, “Well, since we’re _here_ , we might as well see what other intel we can dig up.” She went straight for the computer. Bruce shrugged and began pulling open desk drawers. He was always curious to know what SHIELD knew; he’d been personally offended that they’d found him so easily when he had believed himself to be off the grid in Kolkata. He personally didn’t find much of interest in the safe house, but Carol seemed satisfied with whatever she’d found. 

“Okay, let’s go,” she said. Steve nodded obediently and led them to Fury’s actual house. It was a modest ranch house with a small, fenced in backyard. It appeared untouched by the looting that had sporadically broken out immediately after the Snap, though once Carol punched her way inside they heard an alarm sound. Steve managed to quickly silence it. Carol went room to room, calling for Goose. Bruce had never known Fury very well, and wouldn’t have expected him to live in such a normal looking home. 

The kitchen smelled terrible, and Bruce decided to make himself useful by cleaning out the abandoned fridge. He smiled with amusement at the collection of magnets from international cities, and with relief that the fridge was fairly empty. Fury clearly hadn’t eaten many meals at home. 

“Oh, God, this smells terrible,” Carol said. She entered the kitchen with an orange cat in her arms. “But if you spent time on Sakaar, I guess this wouldn’t be so bad in comparison. Which, we never got around to talking about how you made it to Sakaar! Guess we’ll have something to talk about on the way back.”

“Guess so,” Bruce said reluctantly. “That’s Goose? Can I pet her?”

“Sure. Actually, here, would you hold her?” Carol handed over the cat without waiting for a reply. Bruce cradled her in his arms and scratched behind her ears. He was more of a dog person, but it was still nice to hold Goose’s small, warm weight. She started purring, and he smiled. 

Carol smiled back. “She likes you! But I’m getting a call, I’m going to take it.”

“Is it Tony?” 

“No, sorry...our message still probably wouldn’t have reached him yet if he’s as far as Titan,” she reminded him, though her tone was kind. Then to her wrist she said, “Maria! Where are you? No, I know, it’s been too long, but…” She patted Goose’s head and kept chatting as she left the kitchen.

“You hungry?” Goose purred. Bruce had seen some canned cat food on top of the fridge, and he carefully set Goose down and opened a can. Goose’s purring intensified, and then tentacles shot out from her mouth and sucked up the whole thing, can included, before Bruce could find a bowl to serve it in. 

Goose sat up and licked her paws daintily. 

“Okay, so you really are an alien, huh?” 

Goose rubbed against Bruce’s legs. 

“I’m pretty sure I’ve done the same thing when I’ve been hungry. Or, well, Hulk has. I wonder, are you just one Flerken or are you a Flerken inside of a cat? You can’t talk, can you?”

Goose stalked over to sit in front of the cat flap in the kitchen door, which led out to the back yard. She seemed to be waiting for Bruce.

“Hmm. Good idea. Let’s get out of this kitchen. I bet you don’t like how it smells either. Or maybe you do...it doesn’t seem to have affected your appetite, anyway.” 

Bruce opened the door and stepped outside, with Goose trotting behind him. The yard was still in pretty good shape despite weeks of neglect, and it was a nice day out. Bruce hadn’t been outside in some time. Probably too much time. He sat down on the soft grass, and Goose immediately settled in his lap, purring with contentment. 

Bruce must have dozed off in the sunshine; he’d been sleeping very poorly for weeks, tossing and turning in a too-empty bed. He awoke to Steve softly calling his name. Steve was crouched next to Bruce, gently scratching Goose’s ears. Goose was still purring. Bruce supposed she’d been lonely too. 

“Hey! Bruce! Carol got a message from Tony.”

“What? How...how long was I asleep? I thought it would take awhile...I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”

“It’s okay, it wasn’t that long. I guess he’s closer than we thought.”

“That’s...wait, what’s wrong?” Bruce asked. He’d wanted to say it was great news, but Steve’s face was grim. Even more grim than it usually looked these days.

“Well...it was a distress call that came through…I guess he’d been broadcasting it for awhile but not on a band we could access.”

“Dammit!” Bruce knew he hadn’t been doing enough to reach Tony. There must have been some other frequency he could have tried, some tweak he could have made. 

”Listen, Bruce, it sounded like he...he’s in pretty bad shape.”

“But alive?”

“Yeah.” Left unsaid: _At least, he was when he sent the signal._

“And the others?”

Steve just shook his head, and Bruce clutched Goose. 

“Oh, god…” He’d thought himself immune to new grief, but things could always get worse, couldn’t they. Peter was so young… “Okay, but, Tony, can we…” 

“Carol’s already on her way.”

“In the Quinjet?”

“No, she just…” Steve gestured. 

Bruce blinked. “What, she just flew into space? Just...flew?”

Steve nodded. “Like...like Iron Man with no armor. It was amazing.” Steve sounded reverent, even hopeful. 

“Can’t believe I slept through it.”

“Are you feeling better?”

Bruce shrugged. He was still exhausted, but he knew Steve was too. All of the survivors were. Bruce had prescribed everyone sleeping pills but everyone, Bruce included, feared being impaired by the pills more than they feared exhaustion. “I imagine I feel better than Tony does, anyway. So what now?”

“Hmm?”

“I mean, do we just wait here? How long will it take? Should we try to follow on the Quinjet? Won’t...won’t Tony need medical help?”

“...Carol kind of just took off, she didn’t exactly leave a flight plan.”

“Should we wait here? It would be better at the compound, we have medical facilities…she didn’t say anything about what we should do?”

“Sorry, Bruce, it was...man, you can’t believe how fast she flies.” 

Bruce sighed and pet Goose. 

After another moment, Steve ventured, “I think we should go back to the compound. We can always communicate with Carol using that original device, if she needs another signal to find us.”

“And it’s probably where Tony would ask to be taken. Okay. Yeah.” Bruce carefully stood, still cradling Goose. 

“Maybe I’ll leave a note here, just in case.”

“Old school. I like it.”

On the Quinjet, Steve asked, “Do you think we should put the cat in a carrier or anything?”

“She’s a Flerken,” Bruce corrected. Then he scratched Goose’s chin and cooed, “Aren’t you a Flerken? Aren’t you the cutest little Flerken?”

“I can tell your advanced biological studies are really coming in handy.”

Bruce laughed. “She’ll be fine. We’re just going to upstate New York, not outer space.”

“If you say so, Doc.”

Indeed, Goose handled the flight like a pro. Bruce, on the other hand, was riddled with anxiety. What kind of shape would Tony be in? What had he been through? Why had he taken the ship into space? It should have been Bruce. No matter how irritatingly uncooperative Hulk had been lately, Bruce was still pretty sure that Hulk wouldn’t let them die. In fact, Hulk seemed more present in Bruce’s mind than he had been for awhile. It was Goose; Hulk always loved animals. (It was not unlike _Of Mice And Men_ ; it was sort of charming, if Bruce could forget about how things had ended for Lennie. At least Goose could probably hold her own better than Lennie’s rabbit had.)

Worst of all, how was he going to tell Tony about Pepper? There were so many losses that would be painful but ultimately bearable; he wasn’t sure that Pepper’s loss could be borne. But perhaps it wouldn’t have to be borne for long; perhaps Tony would have learned how to undo the Snap. If anyone could have, surely it would be Tony. Bruce had to believe that. 

They made it back to the compound uneventfully and filled the rest of the team in on what they’d learned. However fast Carol could fly, she wasn’t back yet. Bruce thought about taking Goose to the lab for study, but he decided it would be more prudent to wait for Carol to share what she might already know about Flerken biology. He tried to make Goose comfortable in the meantime, setting up a litter box (thankfully, they always kept kitty litter on hand for absorbing oil spills) and water dish. 

Finally, he retreated to a couch in the common room. He was too keyed up to do anything productive, so he settled in to watch the day’s depressing news. Goose trotted in to join him, which wasn’t much of a surprise; Nat followed behind Goose, which _was_ a surprise. She rarely took any leisure time. But then, neither did Bruce, and there he was.

“So this is Nick’s famous alien cat, huh?” She reached out and stroked Goose. 

“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true.”

“We’re way past crazy, Banner. Why _wouldn’t_ Nick Fury have a pet alien who looks exactly like an orange cat. A very beautiful orange cat, aren’t you just a beautiful cat?”

“A beautiful Flerken,” Bruce corrected. 

They watched TV together for hours; eventually the rest of the team trickled in to join them. It had been a long time since the common room had been so crowded. They were all waiting for Carol, of course, but no one mentioned it aloud. One by one the others gave up and went to bed, or at least to their quarters. Rhodey was the last to leave, and on his way out he squeezed Bruce’s shoulder and said, “Hey. Tony’s a survivor.”

Bruce nodded. “Yeah. Night, Rhodey.” 

“Take care, Bruce.”

Alone, Bruce waited and waited and eventually drifted off into a fitful sleep on the couch, plagued by dreams of Carol coming home with Tony’s corpse.

When he awoke, it was to Carol calling his name. “Bruce! Bruce, wake up, you’re a doctor, right?”

And then, in a faint voice distorted through armor, Tony said, “Can’t believe you got a cat without asking me…”

Bruce leapt up, displacing Goose from his lap. Goose yowled her displeasure and rubbed against Carol’s leg.

“Tony, oh my god, let’s get you to the medbay, oh my god, it’s _so good to see you_.”

Tony raised a familiar protest: “I don’t need the medbay,” he said with a voice hoarse as to be almost unintelligible, which made his case even less plausible than usual. “I just need a cheeseburger.”

Tony, wearing a battered Iron Man suit—apparently even the nanotech had its limits—was supported on one side by Carol, and on the other side by someone who looked kind of like a blue lady C-3PO. The newcomer said, “Stark definitely requires medical attention. He’s dehydrated, malnourished, and recovering from an oxygen starvation.”

“Of course. Let’s go. I’m sorry, you are…?” Bruce started leading the way to the medbay. 

“I’m called Nebula.”

“Do you need medical attention as well? I’m sorry, I can’t...tell?” 

“I built her a new arm,” Tony whispered. “It’s not my best work though.”

“It’s perfectly adequate,” Nebula said.

Carol and Nebula got Tony up on an exam table and left. The armor dissolved, revealing a black tank top over a frame that was thin and bruised but unmistakably his Tony. Under the armor, he smelled almost as bad as Fury’s kitchen, but the odor did nothing to diminish Bruce’s joy. 

“God, Tony,” Bruce murmured. He wanted to wrap his arms around Tony and never let go, but his medical training kicked in and he forced himself to start gathering equipment and scanning Tony’s vitals, which were all extremely worrying. 

“You’re a sight for sore eyes.” With a beseeching gaze, Tony reached his arms out for Bruce. “I bet a kiss would make me feel better.”

“IV drip first, kisses later.”

“You’re no fun.”

“Tony, I know this will be hard to hear, but please stop talking, at least until you’ve rehydrated a little.” Hearing Tony’s raspy voice made Bruce’s throat hurt in sympathy.

“Hmm, you know what would shut me up?” Tony asked, with a dramatic pout.

Bruce sighed and shook his head, though he was deeply grateful that Tony was still...Tony. After finding a vein on Tony’s frail arm, Bruce carefully started the IV and then brushed a light kiss over Tony’s wrist. 

“Tease,” Tony whispered.

Bruce leaned in and kissed Tony's parched lips, though he kept it short to make sure Tony was still getting enough O2. Then he pulled away and continued examining Tony, keeping his touch professional despite Tony’s pout. Aided by tech that any hospital outside of Wakanda would kill to have, it didn’t take him long to determine that Tony didn’t have any major injuries. Bruce finished his physical examination with an affectionate ruffle of Tony’s greasy hair. “Looking good, Tony. All things considered.”

Bruce drew his hand down from Tony's hair to cup his cheek. He took a moment to just look at Tony, who smirked and asked, “Am I hallucinating or is my doctor hitting on me?”

Bruce gave Tony a quick forehead kiss. “Your doctor sounds very unprofessional. Now stay here for one sec, I’m going to go heat up some broth for you.”

“Mm, that’s hot.”

Bruce laughed in spite of himself and went to prepare a cup of chicken broth. When he returned a few moments later, Tony was still sitting on the exam table. Bruce was surprised that Tony hadn’t tried to follow him or make a break for his workshop, though he suspected Tony wouldn’t have made it very far in his current condition.

He handed Tony the broth and cautioned him, “Sip it slowly.”

Tony took the cup with trembling hands. After a small sip, he grimaced and said, “Sweetheart, I know you’re a vegetarian, but I gotta say, this is the worst cheeseburger I’ve ever had.”

“Sorry, love, but you’re going to have to work your way back up to solid food. It would make you sick right now.”

Tony sipped more broth. “I’d gladly trade you broth tomorrow for a cheeseburger today.”

“When you’re ready, I’ll make sure you get the best cheeseburger you’ve ever tasted,” Bruce promised. 

Tony smiled. “I’m gonna hold you to that, you know.”

“I know,” Bruce said, with an answering smile.

After some more sips of broth, Tony’s voice sounded stronger as he asked, “So, what’d I miss, besides you getting a cat _without asking me_ and you making friends with a space angel?”

“I didn’t get a cat. She’s a Flerken. And she’s Fury’s.” He wasn’t sure what to call Carol, but “space angel” did seem about right.

Tony took a long sip of broth. “I assume that sentence will make more sense after I’m hydrated?”

“It might not,” Bruce admitted. “Oh, Tony, I’m so glad you’re back.”

“Yeah, now you know what it’s like, getting left behind when someone just gallivants off to space.”

“Yeah, I guess we’re even now.”

“So how’s...where’s…” Tony started and trailed off. Bruce suspected he already knew the terrible answer to the question he was trying to ask. Pepper’s heels would undoubtedly have already clacked their way into the medbay by now, if Pepper hadn’t crumbled into ash. 

Because Bruce was a coward, he sighed and shook his head. “Can we just...wait?”

Tony’s deep brown eyes looked even bigger than usual in his gaunt face, and more sorrowful than Bruce had ever seen them. Maybe it was exhaustion, or maybe it was the desperation in Bruce’s voice, or maybe his time in space had honed Tony’s patience. Whatever the reason, Tony nodded and said, “Yeah, okay.” Then he patted the exam table next to him in a silent invitation. 

Tony would need further medical attention, but his vitals were already improving and for now there wasn’t much else Bruce could do besides make sure Tony got rehydration and rest. So Bruce sat next to him and slipped his arm around Tony’s waist. Tony leaned against his shoulder. “God, I’m gonna have to call—”

“Tomorrow,” Bruce urged. “Now that you’re home, we’ll figure everything out tomorrow. It’s very late, you know. Past our bedtimes.”

“Okay,” Tony agreed, which would have been alarming if it hadn’t been exactly what Bruce wanted to hear. Tony didn’t usually give in to sleep without a fight. “Mm, I missed you, Brucey-Goosey.”

Goose hopped up on the exam table with a curious little “Mrr?” She settled on Bruce’s lap. After Tony finished his broth and set down the mug, Bruce gently tugged one of Tony’s hands over to rest in Goose’s soft fur. Goose purred, Tony sighed, and Bruce wished they could stay like that forever. Of course, they couldn’t: Tony would need a bath, and then they should both get some sleep in their bed, and before long, they’d have to get back to work. There was so much to be done, so many terrible conversations to have. But they could stay there for a few more minutes, at least. 

“I guess we could get a cat. If you really wanted, it wouldn’t be so bad,” Tony murmured.

Bruce rubbed comforting circles on Tony’s back and said, “We can talk about that tomorrow.”

“Yeah. After we save the world.”

“Oh, well, if we save the world, I want a puppy.”

Tony laughed. “ _When_ we save the world, we can make that happen.”

“The thing is, dogs need a lot of room to run around, so if there’s no earth, dog ownership just isn’t practical.”

“We’ll definitely factor that into our plans.”

“Which we can make tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow,” Tony repeated, and it was the most beautiful sound Bruce had ever heard. For the first time in weeks, he finally felt like tomorrow might be better than today.


	2. Bruce, Goose, & Tony Get Some Juice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I intended for this story to be a one-shot but as time went on I felt increasingly bad about leaving Tony encrusted with space sweat, so I wrote an epilogue to give him a bath. Thanks again to Sally0 for beta reading (fixing my one attempted science reference and encouraging the bath to be even longer, what a hero!!)

Seeing the care Bruce took to revive Tony was _almost_ enough to make Tony glad that Strange had sacrificed the Time Stone for Tony’s life. Of course, the sacrifice wasn’t worth it, but at least it had brought some happiness to Bruce (though he hadn’t yet heard what the cost for Tony’s life had been, back on Titan. Even sweet Bruce would have to agree that the price was too high). 

Bruce was sitting next to Tony on a sterile exam table, gently rubbing Tony’s back and trying halfheartedly to explain that the orange cat on his lap was actually an alien. Tony’s head was fuzzy with exhaustion and hunger, but he welcomed the distraction. Bruce clearly didn’t want to tell Tony who had been lost on Earth. Tony knew that was a bad sign, but for the time being, he was content to accept a Schrödinger state, in which all of his loved ones were simultaneously alive and not alive. Except for Bruce, who was definitely alive, and Peter, who definitely wasn’t. 

“Tony?” Bruce asked. His volume implied that it wasn’t the first time he’d tried to get Tony’s attention. 

“Mm-hmm, yeah?” 

“Your first rehydration IV is just about tapped out, so I want to check your vitals again, see how you’re doing now.”

“M’fine.”

“Well, since I went to all the trouble of going to medical school, I’m just going to double-check that self-diagnosis, okay?”

“Fine.”

“So I’m going to stand up now, okay?”

“If you must.” Tony slumped away from Bruce’s warm shoulder, letting out an involuntary moan in the process.

“Oh, Tony,” Bruce said softly. He carefully scooped Goose off his lap before standing up and studying some readouts. He kept one reassuring hand on Tony’s shoulder. “How do you feel? Any nausea? Pain?”

“Mm, I love it when you talk dirty to me.”

“I’m serious, Tony. I know it’s been, uh, a long time since you had anything to eat. So it’ll be hard for your body to start to reabsorb the nutrients it needs. I can give you some meds. Just say the word.”

“Uh…I don't know how I feel,” Tony admitted. He’d gotten used to the weakness, the hunger pains, the cold. Now he was overwhelmed with new sensations. 

“Okay. That's fair, you don’t have to know right now," Bruce said sympathetically. Tony had missed him so much. Bruce handed him a carton of coconut water and said, "Why don't you try to drink some of this? Slowly."

Tony took a sip. It was _delicious_ , so sweet and refreshing. He took another sip, and then felt Bruce's hand on his. "Slowly, Tony. I'm so sorry, I just don't want you to get sick."

"I was! Slowly!" Tony protested incoherently, but he realized the carton was already more than half empty.

"How about if we get you cleaned up, then you can finish the carton after a bath? And then some sleep? In a bed?”

“One more sip?"

Bruce gave him a gentle smile and held the carton up to his mouth, offering Tony the smallest sip. Tony heard himself whine involuntarily when Bruce pulled it away. "I'm _so sorry_ , love."

"If you were really sorry you'd just give it to me." Tony immediately regretted his words when Bruce's face crumpled. "Sorry, Bruce, I know...I know you're right, I just…"

“Shhh.” Bruce stood in front of Tony and leaned in to give him a tight hug. Finally, he pulled away, and briskly disconnected Tony’s IV drip. "Do you think you can walk with just my help, or should I get a wheelchair?”

Carol and Nebula had supported him into the medbay earlier, but they’d left. Tony would need to take Nebula to his workshop soon; she'd need some more repairs, but he knew that she'd hold together just fine for the night.

“I can walk,” Tony said indignantly. “...I’m pretty sure.”

“Okay...we can give it a try, but don’t count on the Other Guy to carry you.”

But Tony felt stronger already, and it turned out Bruce was all the support he needed to make it to the elevator. Bruce, coconut water still temptingly in hand, slowly led him to the bathroom of the suite Tony had prepared for him at the new Avengers compound, even though Bruce had been MIA when it was constructed. Tony had never given up hope that Bruce would return, and he’d made sure a Hulk-proof bedroom was ready when that day came.

Bruce helped Tony sit on the toilet and then drew a warm bath in the room’s large tub. Then he efficiently removed Tony’s filthy clothes and helped him into the tub. 

"FRIDAY, do me a favor and burn those clothes."

"That seems unsafe, sir."

"Ugh, I have to do everything myself." Tony knew she was still learning, but FRIDAY could be so irritatingly literal. 

Bruce shook his head. "I'll take care of it, Tony. Later." 

"I was experimenting with nanotech clothes, but I thought it would be more comfortable to keep a cotton-blend base layer underneath...but I didn't know how long I'd be stuck wearing it," Tony confessed. It felt wonderful to be free of those clothes.

"That's still pretty impressive. Think you could make me some nano pants? Maybe the Other Guy would come back to try them on." Tony’s mind spun with ideas. 

Then, fully clothed, Bruce knelt by the tub, splashed a hand in the water, and asked, "Is this good? Not too hot? Your body is going to have trouble regulating temperature, so we want to keep you warm."

“Mmm. It's good. But you’re not going to join me?” he asked with a pout.

Bruce looked thoughtful. “I suppose it would be easier to help you that way.”

“Plus it’s been so long since I’ve seen you naked. Years!”

Bruce smiled faintly. “I guess it has. It—I don’t remember all the time I missed.”

“What do you mean? What happened?”

Bruce stripped off his button-down shirt and khakis; Tony loved his nerdy boyfriend with his whole heart. Bruce bit his lip and said, “Oh...that’s right, we didn’t really have time to catch up before you left.” 

Tony remembered the shock of seeing Bruce suddenly appear in the park, the panic as Bruce told him about Thanos, and then the horror as the Children of Thanos appeared...they'd simply never had a chance to connect. “No. We didn't. So let's catch up. Where were you, Brucey-Goosey? I looked _everywhere_.”

Bruce slipped in the tub behind Tony, holding him up and gently cleaning the grime off him with a washcloth. It felt so good, it brought tears to Tony’s eyes.

“Well.” Bruce drew a deep, shaky breath. “I was apparently on a planet called Sakaar. But I don’t really remember it because most of the time I was there, I was Hulk.”

“ _Most of the time_? What do you mean?” Tony knew, better than most, how draining even a few hours as Hulk were for Bruce.

“Close your eyes, I’ll wash your hair.”

“Bruce,” Tony said firmly, even as Bruce carefully took a shower extension and sprayed warm water over his hair. 

“I don’t know, Tony, I don’t remember. It doesn't matter.” Bruce sounded on the verge of tears.

“I thought you said Thor found you?”

“He did, that’s...he helped me change back. We escaped together.” Bruce massaged shampoo into Tony’s scalp.

"Is that why...are you and the Other Guy still, uh, not speaking?" Tony still felt a clutch of fear whenever he remembered the moment he'd realized that Bruce wasn't going to change, that he was just going to stay in his fragile, unarmored human body when New York was falling into chaos. He wasn't used to having to worry about Bruce in that way. He had worried that Bruce was unhappy, that Bruce would leave (a totally valid fear, it turned out), that Bruce would make something disgusting for dinner...but until that moment, he'd never had to worry that Bruce would be physically injured, or worse. He really didn't care for it.

Bruce made a noncommittal noise. "Kind of. Yeah. I don't know. I think he's...oh, I don't know."

“And Thor…”

“Actually! Some good news, Thanos didn’t actually kill him like I thought. Thor turned up in Wakanda after you...left. He had a new weapon. It...hurt Thanos. Close your eyes again.” Bruce rinsed Tony’s hair, giving him time to luxuriate under the warm spray.

"That _is_ good news."

Bruce rubbed conditioner into Tony's hair, filling the room with a minty scent. It tingled pleasantly. Tony had gotten so used to how itchy and uncomfortable his unwashed scalp felt that he'd almost forgotten things could be different. He rubbed his face and joyfully looked forward to a shave. Bruce carefully finished rinsing Tony's hair and then stood up to climb out of the tub.

"Wait, where are you going?" Tony asked.

"You're all clean, let's get you dressed."

"But I haven't done you yet."

Bruce laughed. "I'm fine, thanks, Tony. You need to rest."

"But I want to. I missed you. I missed your beautiful hair. Come here."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, come back."

After a long moment, Bruce complied. Tony took a moment to enjoy cleaning Bruce’s sturdy frame before he turned the water on Bruce's curls and started shampooing. Bruce gave a contented little sigh. Tony really had missed this. He'd made sure to have a big tub installed in Bruce's quarters here at the compound; post-transformation, Bruce was usually exhausted and sore, and one of his few balms was a nice soak, a process with which Tony loved to assist. It was so enjoyable to see his oft-tense boyfriend limp and relaxed.

Bruce fell silent under Tony's ministrations, and without the distraction of conversation, Tony's mind started to wander. He kept scrubbing Bruce’s hair, much longer than was actually necessary, but he loved running the soft curls through his fingers. He heard the whir of the tub as it automatically refreshed the water, maintaining the warm temperature. Tony had been cold for so long, it was disorienting to be warm. Thinking about the cold of space made him think of—

"Tony? Are you okay?" Bruce spun around and looked up at Tony, soap in his hair and concern in his eyes as Tony stifled a sob. "Oh, Tony, let's go to bed. C'mon."

"N-no, let me rinse your hair," Tony insisted through tears. 

“It’s okay, Tony, I’ll do it later.” Bruce tried to stand up but Tony aimed the shower extension like a squirt gun at his sudsy head. Tony had worked so much lather into Bruce’s hair that he looked like an elderly clown. 

"Y-you look ridiculous," he sobbed.

"Okay, okay," Bruce said. His tired face looked like he was going against his better judgment, but he settled back in the tub and tilted his head forward. Tony finished rinsing Bruce's hair, happy for a task to focus on, but the floodgate of tears had opened and he couldn't seem to close it. As soon as he was finished, Bruce turned off the water and helped Tony out of the tub.

"S-sorry," Tony said.

"Shhh." Bruce dried Tony off with a fluffy towel and pulled him into a roomy pair of soft flannel pajamas. They were obviously from Bruce's wardrobe—Tony didn’t usually wear full pajamas—but Tony liked how cozy they felt. Maybe he'd have to get his own set. Tony and Bruce used to be able to share clothes—Bruce always complained that Tony’s were too tight, but they were actually just flattering. But now Bruce’s clothes hung off Tony’s thin frame in a way that was almost comical. Bruce tightened the drawstring waistband and finished the look by putting warm wool socks over Tony's feet. While he dressed himself, he quietly said, "It's okay, love, it's okay to cry. But let's get you into bed. We have to keep you warm."

Tony nodded and let himself be led to bed, where Bruce tucked them both in under a heavy weighted blanket and curled up against Tony’s back, wrapping an arm around him and pulling him close. Tony still couldn't stop crying and shivering, despite Bruce's ongoing murmured reassurances.

Finally, Tony caught his breath and confessed, "Thanos told Strange he would kill me unless Strange gave him the Time Stone. I thought he would...I was ready. A-and, but, Strange did it! He—he should have let me die."

Bruce tightened his arms around Tony and planted a kiss on his cheek. "I'm glad he didn't."

"He said," Tony sniffed, "He said that he'd gone to see fourteen million potential futures and the only way we succeeded was...this one."

"So—so he said we could succeed?"

"Just one future, just one out of fourteen million."

"But we'd have _no_ chance without you. I knew that even without hearing it from Strange." 

Tony was touched by Bruce's faith in him, but he whispered, "I would have given my life for Peter's. I—he—he shouldn't even have _been_ there."

"Oh, I know you would have. But I don't think it would have mattered if Peter were on Titan or on earth, you know, when the time came. It's not your fault. It was just terrible random chance."

Somehow that thought hadn’t occurred to Tony before, but it brought him little comfort. "Even if Strange couldn’t, I should have protected him, at least he should have been at home with May when it, he, I…"

"Shh. You did everything you could."

"But it wasn't enough."

"Well...we're not done. There's...there's a Time Stone out there, there's...who knows what we could do? If Strange could go forward in time, who says we couldn't go backward? We could still get the stones back, and...well, now that you're here we'll figure something out. I’ll show you what we’ve been working on, and we’ll get...get everyone back. Tomorrow, okay? We’ll get some sleep and we’ll work on it tomorrow."

Tony thought that if you could use the Time Stone to go backwards, Strange probably would have just done that, but he sniffed and said, "Okay." 

He was taken aback to find Bruce the more optimistic of the two of them. But it probably was true that when he and Bruce had the chance to put their well-rested, fully-oxygenated minds together, they could come up with a better plan than the one Strange had made on the fly. Surely they could learn more about the Stones, surely they could out-think Thanos. 

Tony was just starting to feel slightly soothed by that line of thinking when he felt Bruce start to peel away from him. He yelped in protest, and Bruce reassured him. "Shh, I'll be right back.” Sure enough, he returned a moment later and handed Tony a box of tissues. Tony dried his eyes and blew his nose. Bruce gave him the rest of the coconut water. "You really need to rehydrate after those tears."

Tony let out a small laugh and gratefully drank it. He tried to savor it but it still disappeared too quickly. With a sigh, he put the empty carton on the nightstand and curled back up against Bruce's warm chest. Tony was already half-asleep when he heard a small metallic clinking sound and froze. The sound was definitely getting closer. "Who's there? Why didn’t the alarm go off?" He was so tired but he prepared himself to call his armor. He still didn't know if Bruce could defend himself, and he wasn't about to lose anyone else tonight.

"I think it's just Goose, her collar." Bruce cooed, "Goose? Is that you? Is that you, you beautiful little Flerken?"

Sure enough, the cat—Flerken?—hopped onto the bed and curled up on Tony's feet.

"How did she even get in here?" Tony grumbled. And why didn't Bruce ever talk to Tony with that cute tone of voice?

"Do you want me to take her upstairs?"

"No...don't go. This is fine. For tonight." Goose purred. "But tomorrow we really do need to talk about this cat."

"She's a Flerken. I'm sure Carol will take her. Goose is probably just...confused."

"So we have something in common." Tony didn't want to admit it, but it _did_ feel kind of nice to have her purring at his feet. 

Bruce laughed. "Good night, Tony. Get some rest. If you're feeling better in the morning, we'll get you some apple juice." He pronounced “apple juice” as if it were the most tempting treat imaginable, and in that moment it honestly kind of was. At least, until he was allowed the cheeseburger of his dreams.

"Mmm. And then after juice, we'll save the world."

"Mm-hmm. Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," Tony murmured, before drifting off to a dreamless sleep, safe and warm in Bruce's arms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Update: Endgame isn't even out and this is already jossed by the latest trailer! Oh well, I'm thrilled that Pepper is alive and don't mind my fics branching off into alternate, angstier timelines.


End file.
